He Readily Forgives
LESSON 3
111 Thursday
January 16
"And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against
heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be
called thy son. But the father said to his servants, Bring
forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his
hand, and shoes on his feet." Luke 15:21, 22.
The prodigal was repentant. He admitted his sins and his
unworthiness to be called a son of his father. On the basis
of this the father, representing God, forgave him fully and
freely. "Whom Christ pardons, He first makes penitent"—
Thoughts From the Mount of Blessing,
page 7. With this the
father kissed him tenderly and then gave back to him all the
tokens of reinstatement as a son. His rags were removed and
he was clothed in "the best robe." The ring was a symbol
that the son was still a son.
"Shoes
were the token of sonship,
for only slaves went barefoot."—The
Interpreter's Bible,
Vol.
8, pp. 276, 277.
Only by the father's gift was he clothed in the way char-
acteristic of his family. These gifts replaced the evidences of
the son's impoverishment.
To what was the prodigal's return compared by the father?
Luke 15:24; cf. John 5:24.
In the sight of God a man is really dead only when he is
lost, that is, dead to the love of God. The prodigal had been
dead to the father until he came to himself. He comes to life
when he responds anew to his father's love. So we as sinners
became alive when we accepted Jesus as our Saviour. The
verse parallels the thought of verses 7 and 10 that there is joy
in heaven when a sinner once again becomes alive to the
will of God.
THINK IT THROUGH
What is my attitude toward those who have deliberately
strayed away from God but later returned? What should
it be?
"Your heavenly Father will take from you the garments
defiled by sin. In the beautiful parabolic prophecy of Zecha-
riah, the high priest Joshua, standing clothed in filthy garments
before the angel of the Lord, represents the sinner. And the
word is spoken by the Lord, 'Take away the filthy garments
from him. And unto him He said, Behold, I have caused thine
iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change
of raiment. . . . So they set a fair miter upon his head, and
clothed him with garments.' Zech. 3:4, 5. Even so God will
clothe you with 'the garments of salvation,' and cover you
with 'the robe of righteousness.' Isa. 61:10. 'Though ye have
lien among the pots, yet, shall ye be as the wings of a dove
covered with silver, and her feathers
‘
with yellow gold.' Ps.
68:13."—Christ's Object Lessons,
page 206.
FURTHER STUDY
Christ's Object Lessons,
"Lost and Is Found," pages 204-206.
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Part 5
THE PRODIGAL